Crypto Tsunami Alert: 3 Major Token Unlocks Set to Flood Markets in Late May 2025

Brace for impact—this week’s token unlocks could shake portfolios harder than a Bitcoin maximalist at an altcoin convention.

1. The Whale Awakens: Project X’s $200M cliff unlock hits May 22nd. Early investors have been licking their chops since 2021—will they dump or diamond-hand?

2. Slow Drip Disaster: Protocol Y begins its 18-month linear unlock on May 24th. Perfect timing to test whether ’vesting schedules’ is just fancy talk for ’prolonged pain’.

3. VC Payday: Venture-backed Chain Z releases 15% of its total supply on May 26th. Nothing boosts ’decentralization’ like insiders cashing out at retail’s expense.

Smart money’s watching the order books while Wall Street ’experts’ will inevitably blame the sell pressure on ’market conditions’—never their own lockup expiration models.

1. Polyhedra Network (ZKJ)

• Unlock Date: May 19
• Number of Tokens to be Unlocked: 15.50 million ZKJ (1.55% of Total Supply)
• Current Circulating Supply: 308.39 million ZKJ

Polyhedra Network provides interoperability infrastructure through its zkBridge technology. It enables secure and scalable cross-chain operations. ZKJ is the utility token used for operations, incentives, and governance within the network.

On May 19, the project will unlock 15.50 million ZKJ tokens, valued at approximately $31.73 million. This is equivalent to 5.02% of the current market cap. 

The distribution includes 8.47 million tokens (2.65%) for ecosystem and network incentives, 2.61 million tokens (1.74%) for community, airdrop, and marketing, 3.61 million tokens (2.41%) for foundation reserves, and 800K tokens (4.00%) for pre-TGE token purchasers.

2. Melania Meme (MELANIA)

• Unlock Date: May 20
• Number of Tokens to be Unlocked: 22.50 million MELANIA (2.25% of Total Supply)
• Current Circulating Supply: 395.78 million MELANIA

Despite the HYPE around Trump’s meme coin gala dinner, MEALANIA has experienced extreme volatility. The meme coin fell 97% from its January peak of over $13.

On May 20, 22.50 million MELANIA tokens—worth around $7.75 million—will be unlocked, all allocated to the project’s team (7.5% allocation). 

Earlier this month, wallets associated with the team sold nearly 10 million tokens. Since March, over 42 million tokens—worth approximately $23 million—have been sold off. 

The upcoming unlock raises concerns about further price pressure.

3. Pyth Network (PYTH)

• Unlock Date: May 20
• Number of Tokens to be Unlocked: 2.13 billion PYTH (21.3% of Total Supply)
• Current Circulating Supply: 3.62 billion PYTH

Pyth Network delivers real-time financial data to smart contracts. It is a critical oracle infrastructure provider in DeFi ecosystems. 

The network uses PYTH tokens to incentivize data publishers and contributors.

On May 20, Pyth will unlock 2.13 billion PYTH tokens, valued at $289.96 million. This represents 58.8% of its current market cap. 

The allocation includes 1.13 billion tokens (21.6%) for ecosystem growth, 537.53 million tokens (24.4%) for publisher rewards, 212.50 million tokens (21.3%) for protocol development, and 250 million tokens (25%) for private sale investors. 

This is one of the most significant token unlocks of 2025 to date. The unlock could potentially create substantial sell-side pressure.

This week’s token unlocks are among the most impactful of the month. With over $329 million in new tokens entering circulation, the market may experience increased volatility. 

Overall, investors and traders should closely monitor liquidity conditions and wallet activity, especially around large team and private sale allocations.